New Gun Control Bill to Emerge this Week

Anti-gun state Representative Michael Paymar’s (DFL-64B) stalled gun control package, House File 237, was tabled last night in the House Public Safety Committee without a roll call vote. While this bill itself might be dead for this legislative session, expect to see similar provisions offered as amendments on other legislation on the House floor in the coming weeks.

HF 237, among other anti-gun provisions, would have criminalized private transfers between certain family members, friends, or life-long hunting buddies. This type of legislation is dangerous and must be stopped, as this scheme is the first step towards criminalizing ALL private transfers and can only be enforced with gun registration. And, as we know from experiences in California, Australia and Great Britain, gun registration enables gun confiscation — only from honest citizens — since criminals do not register their guns or submit to criminal investigations.

HF 237's Senate companion Senate File 458, introduced by Senator Ron Latz (DFL- 46), was pulled from consideration by the Senate Rules Committee today, where it had been scheduled for a hearing. This action will likely prevent SF 458 from being a tool for gun control on the Senate floor.

Tomorrow evening, the House Public Safety Committee will hear House File 285 by Representative John Lesch (DFL-66B). This bill will most likely be amended by Representative Paymar to include a provision to criminalize private transfers at gun shows, along with some provisions that the NRA supports. In a deceptive and desperate effort to pass gun control this year, anti-gun legislators are making an attempt to dress up their gun control bill with NRA-supported crime control measures!

Please keep contacting members of the House Public Safety Committee and respectfully urge them to continue to OPPOSE any intrusive gun registration schemes and any bans on private transfers in HF 285. Encourage them to support the real solutions put forward in NRA-supported House File 1325 as reported here.